“Carson Wentz Week” wouldn’t be complete without Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts talking about his former teammate of one season.
Hurts met with the media this week and was asked about his relationship with Wentz.
“It’s definitely a mutual respect between the two of us, when he went to Indy and now,” Hurts said per Nicki Jhabvala of The Washington Post. “Definitely a mutual respect, and I wish him nothing but the best.”
Hurts, as you recall, was a second-round pick in the 2020 NFL draft, less than one year after the Eagles gave Wentz a four-year, $128 million contract extension. There were rumors of Wentz’s unhappiness with the Eagles over spending a second-round pick on a quarterback. Philadelphia insisted Hurts was there to back up Wentz, which made sense considering the team awarded him with a lucrative extension.
How did Hurts view their one season as teammates?
“I just saw he has a great arm, he’s a big guy, hard to tackle, and he just makes kind of crazy plays in the pocket, so I definitely took notice of that when I was a rookie,” Hurts said. “And he still does that now, ducking and dodging and weaving and doing those things.”
That’s a respectful answer. Hurts didn’t say Wentz taught him anything, but Wentz was in his fifth season, and it wasn’t his job to teach Wentz.
When asked about the QBs room with Wentz in 2020, Hurts had an interesting answer.
“I’m just gonna say I think we’re focused on the now,” he answered. “I’m focused on the now. I’m focused on the now.”
Hurts was clearly ready to talk about something else, and you can’t blame him. Regardless of how their relationship was, it’s in the past. Both players have grown since the 2020 season; something Wentz has repeatedly said.
This is more than just a game for these two quarterbacks.
